Memories
by Ashigara's Wolf
Summary: Takao, having moved to a new country, and a new home, tries to not only creative new memories, but confront old ones. (WARNING-Sensitive Content)
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Takao's heart sank. She had looked forward to and planned out this whole night for over a week and a half. She had wanted to take a night off to forget everything that was frustrating her-work, other friends, and the stress of everyday life. She had invited her close friend, Chihaya Gunzou, to walk the beach with her for the night. While he had come, and initially seemed to be enjoying himself, Takao could tell something was bothering him.

"Gunzou?" She eyed him, worriedly.

"Yeah? What's up?" He looked over, his long black hair nearly covering his eyes. Takako felt her cheeks go red at the sight, though she fought down her feelings.

She gave him a stare. "You. Something's bothering you." She looked out over the ocean, squinting in the glare of the setting sun. "I mean, usually you're pretty optimistic and upbeat. But now you're not."

Gunzou stopped walking and leaned against a nearby jetty. "Takao, have you ever been close to someone before?" The blue-haired girl froze, and turned back to face him.

"What do you mean by close?"

Gunzou's face became long, and he cracked a sad smile. "A friend you do nearly everything with, who you trust and care about more than anyone else."

Wincing, Takao's gaze dropped to the sand. _Yeah, you_ , she thought, _I can't say that though. Obviously someone else already has his heart._ She felt her heart breaking as she spoke. "No, not really. I haven't lived here long. Only moved here from Germany a few weeks ago. You're my only real friend." Even as she said it, she felt her face flush, and a bead of sweat slid down the back of her neck.

The truth was that Takao had begun to harbor feelings for her friend not long after they had starting spending more time together outside of school. Gunzou had always been nice, but she had only taken notice of him seriously after he had told off the group of older girls who had been taunting her about her still-strong German accent. The seniors, while they hadn't physically harmed her, had mocked her, as well as shoved her against her locker. As Takao began to cry, the group had left her, laughing amongst themselves. She had sunk to the floor, not even caring as more people pushed past her, taking no notice.

A moment later, the thump of a bag on the floor forced her to look up. "Hey, are you alright?" When Takao focused on him, she recognised him as Chihaya Gunzou, her classmate and the captain of the school's varsity soccer team.

"Chihaya? Why are you here?" Takao made no effort to get off the floor.

He smiled and held out a hand. Warily, she took it, and he helped her up. "I saw them. Those girls. I know who they are." His tone went from friendly to almost angry in the space of a few seconds.

"W-who?" Takao choked.

"Kongou, Hiei, Haruna, and Kirishima. Four rich sisters. All on the varsity cheerleading. I can't stand them. Major jerks in their own different ways." Gunzou smiled. "Anyway, we're gonna be late to class. Come on. I'll walk you there. I'll explain to Ms. Warren what happened. It'll be fine."

Hurriedly gathering her scattered bags and laptop, Takao nodded and wrung her hands. Gunzou gave her a questioning look. To his surprise, she suddenly tackled him with a hug. Before he could react, she had pulled away, apologising profusely. Gunzou shook his head. "Nah it's fine. You're welcome. Come on. We don't wanna be too late." He smiled softly, and ruffled her hair. "I'll keep an eye on you."

As so it was. Ever since, for the next three weeks, Gunzou picked her up at her second period class and personally walked her to their shared class. He ignored the sisters' taunts and catcalls, and somehow, his ignoring them helped Takao ignore them as well.

Now, as Takao listened to Gunzou talk about having someone he was close to, that incident, as well as several other things he had done for her were fresh in her mind. "I had another friend like that," Gunzou said softly.

"Had?" Takao murmured.

"Kotono Amaha was my closest friend when I was growing up. We did everything together. Our relationship was probably half brother-sister and half boyfriend-girlfriend. I don't really know what to think now." Gunzou clenched his fist, and Takao could see that it was taking everything he had to keep from crying.

"You said 'was' and 'had'." What happened?" She walked over and sat next to him. "Is something wrong?"

"You remember when I didn't text you at all nearly all day last Thursday?" He eyed her wearily. Takao nodded. "I, uh, was told something about Kotono."

Concern mounting, Takao nodded. "That doesn't sound good. What happened? Is she okay?"

Gunzou didn't answer right away. He clenched his fist again, while pursing his lips in an attempt to keep from crying. Takao slid an arm around his shoulders. "I-I found out t-that s-she was k-killed two days ago."

Takao gasped, and her grip on her friend tightened. "Car accident. Apparently she had stopped at a railroad crossing two nights ago. As she waited, the driver of the tractor-trailer must had been either distracted or tired." He paused, trying to gather his thoughts. "When he rear-ended her, he pushed her through the crossing gates and onto the track." He paused again, tears flowing freely now. "At least it was quick." A slight edge of bitterness crept into his voice.

"That doesn't make it any easier to deal with." Takao whispered. As Gunzou broke, sobs racking his body, Takao pulled him into a hug to comfort him just as he had done for her so many times before. She didn't really know what to say, so she simply held him. It was the least she could do for him. Plus, it gave her an excuse to hug him, something she could never do enough.

After some time, Gunzou sniffed twice, pulled away, and shook his head. "I should go."

"No, why?" Takao panicked. She had, despite her confused feelings, actually been enjoying talking with him. The last thing she wanted was for him to go now.

Gunzou said nothing, only burying his head in his hands. As she watched, Takao could feel her heart breaking again as she watched her closest friend, crush, and older brother figure go to pieces. Again lacking any better idea of what to do, she simply pulled him into another hug. To her surprise, this time he vehemently returned her affection.

After a moment he spoke again, almost in a whisper. "I guess I'll have to eventually let her go. I mean, there's no getting her back, and I know she wouldn't have wanted me to act like this." He pulled away just enough to look Takao in the eyes. "I'm just not sure where to go from here, or really what to do." Gunzou sighed. "Like, tonight was supposed to be fun, a night to get away from everything else. And all i did was bring it here. That's not fair to you—"

He was cut off when Takao pressed her finger against his lips. "That's enough of that. I'm gonna stop you right there." She took his hand and pulled him to sit down next to her in the sand. _How far do I go? I know he's hurting from losing his friend, and I want to help, but I also want him to see me as someone else he can love._ Frowning slightly at herself, Takao squeezed Gunzou's arm in an attempt to both calm herself and comfort him. "Whatever you need to talk about, go ahead. If it's something that you need to discuss, then I'll be here to listen. I want you to trust me and talk to me, but I'm not going to force you"

Gunzou' despite how he was feeling, could feel himself smiling slightly as Takao brought that up. However, that happiness was short lived. Again, Takao had mentioned their 'friendship', and while Gunzou couldn't deny that he had harboured a romantic interest in Kotono, after spending more and more time with Takao and getting to know her, watching over her, and sharing the occasional laugh, he wasn't sure that he wanted to think of Takao as only a friend and classmate. "Takao, what would you do in this situation?"

The sudden question caught the young girl by surprise. "M-me? Uh, I'm not sure. I guess I have been in that situation when I left Germany since I left most of my other friends there." She paused, trying to figure out how to phrase her words. "I wouldn't want to just spend all my time after losing someone just holed up and being sad. I guess if l lost the one I was closest to I would want to find someone else to spend my time with." Smiling slightly, Takao scooted closer, trying to draw in some of Gunzou's warmth as the sun sank below the horizon. Yawning, Takao leaned against him, resting her head on his shoulder. He returned her affection by wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "Getting cold?" Gunzou gave her a small smile, and Takao felt her face turn slightly red.

"Yeah, that too." She realised she had said too much before she could stop herself. "Oh, uh, never mind that," she stammered.

Still remaining close, Gunzou pushed himself up and faced her. "I know that phrase," he smirked. "What's bugging you?"

Takao grimaced. While she had wanted to have this sort of conversation with Gunzou, right now it didn't have the same, slow sweet, trusting feel that she'd always imagined. "How do you see me?" She paused. "Actually, let me rephrase that: How do you feel about me?" Bracing herself, Takao once again forced herself to meet Gunzou's gaze.

Gunzou didn't immediately respond. He stared out to sea for a moment, presumably trying to piece together his thoughts. "Not everyone has that someone they can return home to. Many people leave home and go to sea because they want to get away from their lives. But sooner or later, they come home. To where? I think that, no matter how angry or frustrated or sad or whatever drove them to leave someone is, sooner or later they come home, and they want to come home to someone. Who exactly that someone is depends on the person, but for me, that _was_ Kotono. However, after running into you that morning in the hall, and now having spent more and more time with you, it appears that you've become that reason, or more specifically, that some _one_."

He paused, and looked over at Takao, smiling slightly while also blushing. Takao was blushing and smiling as well, and a flame of hope flickered in her eyes. "You've become like a sister to me, Takao. Somehow, it's like I can always go and talk to you about whatever, whenever, and I know you'll be there to answer me and help me. That is something that can't ever be replaced."

As soon as that flame was lit, it was extinguished. Takao's face fell, and she turned away. "I guess that sometimes you have to be content with just being 'so' close to someone. Like no matter what you do, you'll just be second place, or third place, or just someone's friend and nothing more, you know, things like that. Any of that make sense?"

Gunzou winced. "I must be especially slow tonight. What is it I'm missing?"

Blushing even more, and feeling her hands and face begin to sweat, Takao decided to take the bull by the horns. "I guess I'm just realising that all I'm ever gonna be is your sister figure, and nothing more." She paused and stood, facing the now black sea while tucking her hand into her pockets. "I can come to terms with that idea, but it still hurts nevertheless to hear it." Takao looked back down at Gunzou, who was looking up at her with an expression of partial sadness, and partial shame. "Maybe you're right. Maybe we should go, and call it a night before I start-" She paused. "-before something else goes wrong." As Takao turned to head back to her car, she began walking quicker and hiding her face in her hood. Gunzou hurried up and caught her by the arm.

"What were you going to say, before you corrected yourself?" While his tone wasn't condescending, he did seem to be pushing her for an answer.

Taking a deep breath, Takao answered without facing Gunzou. "I was going to say 'before I start crying', but it's too late for that." Gunzou said nothing, only holding her arm lightly. Takao heard him curse a few times, while his hand dropped to his side.

"Would you please come sit back down with me?" His voice took on a sad tone, almost pleading. Takao turned to face him, and Gunzou's heart broke. In all the time he had known her, the only times Takao had cried were after she was bullied, or when she spoke with an old friend she had been missing from Germany. He'd always prided himself on keeping her happy and smiling, and now she was crying, because of him.

Eyes red, Takao glanced up. Gunzou appeared ready to cry again. Despite her pain, she nodded, and allowed him to guide her back to the jetty. As the two sat down again, Gunzou gently turned Takao's head towards him. "Have you really had feelings for me for this long?"

"I'm realising that I am the kind of person who falls for someone in an instant, after just a few interactions." She sighed. "Yeah, I started to like you right after you walked me to class that second day. After we began spending more time together, my feelings intensified. But no matter what I did, I couldn't seem to catch your eye."

Gunzou nodded thoughtfully. "I've been told that I can be blind to other people's affections." He sighed, and leaned back against the jetty's cold stone. "But as much as I cared about Kotono, our relationship is different. Kotono was always just talking about simple nothings or we would just go hang out at a movie or something."

Leaning forward, Gunzou put a hand on Takao's arm. "But you've always been there for me whenever something was going wrong. Somehow, after I started walking you to class and talking more, something about you drew me to you."

He paused, and laughed. "I'm sounding super cliche, aren't I?"

Nearly fumbling her words, Takao vehemently shook her head. "You're being honest. Say it however you can."

"Takao, if I'm to be totally honest, I do feel the same way about you. I never even considered Kotono a girlfriend as much as she was my sister." Gunzou smiled, and stood, offering a hand to Takao. As she stood, Takao looked him in the eyes, the flame in her eyes burning again.

"So what does this mean, for us?" Gunzou asked, still sounding nervous, which he was.

"Well, what do you want it to mean?" Takao surprised herself by how calm she sounded.

Gunzou said nothing, only stepping closer to her, and pulling her into yet another hug, his arms clinging to her as if she were something precious he might lose if he let go. He pulled back for a moment, looked her in the eye, and smirked. "I want it to mean this."

In one swift motion, he dropped his arms to take her hands in his, while at the same time pressing his lips against her's, trying to put unsaid and unspoken desires into the kiss, hoping Takao would understand.

Takao's eyes went wide, and she tensed up, but after a brief moment, she melted into him, allowing herself to enjoy the moment. Something she had once only dreamed of, in only her most tired, sleep-deprived brain, was now a reality. A shocking, unexpected reality, but reality nevertheless.

After nearly a full minute, Gunzou pulled away, if only because of a lack of air. Takao was panting as well, but she looked happier than Gunzou had ever seen her. As Gunzou gazed into Takao's deep blue eyes, he couldn't help but break out laughing. Takao started giggling, and soon the two were leaning against each other totally at ease.

"So, is that what you want this to become?" Gunzou deadpanned at her.

Takao stared for a moment, then punched him in the arm and laughed again. "Of course it is. I want nothing else right now." Before he could reply, Takao gave Gunzou another kiss and pulled him into another hug, this one softer and more relaxed.

"You've been waiting for this for a while haven't you?" Gunzou murmured as Takao nuzzled his cheek.

"Hmm," Takao murmured. "You could say that." Yawning, she leaned into Gunzou's side, and he stumbled briefly, before catching her with a quiet laugh.

Even though Takao had dreamed many times about telling Gunzou how she felt and thought often about how badly she wanted him to see her as someone he could love, the events of the evening had exceeded her dreams. After a moment, she pulled away only enough to look him in the eyes. "You do know I dreamed about this a lot, right?"

Gunzou smiled. "Yeah, based on the way you acted, I'm sure you did." He paused, as Takao shivered in his arms.

She shook and rubbed her hands together. "S-sorry. I j-just wasn't p-prepared to be out this long."

Gunzou hurriedly removed his jacket and drapped it over her shoulders. "Here, wear this till we get back to my truck. Let's go. It is late, getting cold, and we don't want people to think things, do we?"

"Not yet," Takao whispered. "Alright yeah let's head back. I am getting cold and now you don't have your jacket, you silly."

As Takao turned to walk back, she dropped her hand down and slid her fingers through Gunzou's. He traced his thumb over Takao's hand, squeezing gently. Takao smiled and pulled Gunzou closer to her. "I love you. I've wanted to say that for so long."

Blushing, Gunzou buried his face in Takao's shoulder. "You're too cute. Dangerous to my health." He squeaked as Takao poked him in the side. "Eep! Fine, you win. I love you too sweetheart."

Takao only squeaked and looked away, blushing. Gunzou started laughing and after a moment, she joined in. "Come on, let's get back to my truck and get you home." Gunzou said.

Takao didn't object. She clung to Guznou's hand and allowed him to lead her. As Gunzou helped her climb in, Takao found she couldn't stop smiling. She had waited, wished, hoped for, and dreamed about a day like this since she first met Gunzou, never thinking that he could possibly share her feelings. Even today hadn't exactly gone as planned. Yet Takao wouldn't have wanted any part of it to change. As Gunzou drove home, he did his best to hold her hand, despite having to shift gears every so often. Even once they reached her apartment, he wouldn't let her get herself out of the car.

"Gunzou I can open a car door myself," she insisted, but he was adamant about getting it for her.

"I'll get it, don't you worry," Gunzou waved off her concerns. As he helped her out and go to the door, Takao couldn't help but smile at her boyfriend's simple, helping nature. "You're too kind, ya know that?"

"Maybe I am. But for you, I don't mind doing this." He opened her door, ushered her inside, and helped her remove his jacket. "Anything else I can get for you?"

Takao shook her head. "I'm fine for tonight. Just make sure you get home safe, alright?" Reaching up, she kissed Gunzou one last time before nudging him towards the door. "I love you. Text me when you get home."

Gunzou smiled. "Will do. Love you too." As he walked back out to his truck, his thoughts wandered back to the past few hours. He hadn't expected Takao to be as direct as she had, nor had he expected to tell her about Kotono. Kotono was something from his past that he didn't tell too many people about. However, something about Takao's simple, trusting, friendly nature had convinced him to talk about Kotono. As the icing on the cake, he had found out that Takao reciprocated his own feelings for her. Gunzou had scored not only a confidant of personal hardships, but also a caring and capable girlfriend. What more could he have wanted?


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 (warning-sensitive content)

The next weeks had passed quicker than either Takao or Gunzou could have imagined. Takao had spent several afternoons each week at Gunzou's apartment to do homework, as well as going out a few times to the movies. Being away from her apartment and away from the stress of the constant phone calls had helped her relax for the time that she was away, but the stress returned the moment the came home.

With the returns home came the tiredness, the heartache, the thoughts, the frustration. It was something that Takao had never told Gunzou, for the sake of their relationship. Sometimes she wondered if her parents had some type of telepathy and knew that Takao had finally found someone who loved and cared about her, and were determined to break her on their own. She shivered, as she opened yet another email form her father.

 _Remember how you ended up where you are. Your mother and I, while we are not going to forgive you for your childish outbursts, we insist that you return home. It's necessary for the success of our shipping company, especially since you need to undergo training. Furthermore, imagine the PR disaster that would result if the press found out our daughter had run away, to another country nonetheless. If not, we may decide to_ take measures _to ensure things run the course they need to._

 _Take care,_

 _Father_

'We insist you return home', Takao scoffed at the hypocrisy of that statement. Her parents weren't as much concerned about her as they were about their public image, and the company. As had Takao closed her laptop and crashed back on her bed, she tried to keep her head up as more thoughts crashed through her mind. 'The only thing they give a damn about is their image. If I have the ability to hurt that, then I'm needed. If I do damage it, then I'm thrown aside like a too-small shirt.'

Clenching her fist, Takao forced herself to stand, her head pounding. A few tears clung to the edges of her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. It wouldn't matter anyway. No one was around to see them, and it was too late for her to bother Gunzou now. He wouldn't mind, but he needed sleep. Sleep wasn't going to find her for a while. Takao had been receiving emails like those from her father for way to long for her to simply shrug them off and keep going. Heading towards the bathroom, out of options, she removed her shirt, to expose her shoulders. A few scars already graced her upper arm, and she intended to add to them tonight.

The cuts had begun after she had exploded at her father for his constant iron-fisted ruling of her life. He had only sat there, giving her a condescending look, before simply standing up and walking out on her, ignoring her angry cries and shouts. An attempt to grab his arm as he walked by had earned her a backhand on the left side of her face. The shock had nearly driven her to run off that night, but she couldn't bring herself to do it, despite her frustration and pain. With no other option, Takao had snuck into her mother's bathroom, removed the nail clippers, and returned to her room.

Now again turning the clippers over in her hands, Takao ran a finger along the small blade and thought back over the recent emails, and the fact that despite having a boyfriend, her father still managed to project himself onto her life. Takao sighed. Saying nothing more, she turned to the side, pulled the set of paper towels out and set them on the counter, and ran a hand over the scars on her arm, some quite large.

She realized how calm she was about what she was about to do, and found a smile breaking on her face. A humorless laugh forced its way out, and Takao shook her head to clear her thoughts. She gave a small gasp as the edge of the clipper bit through her soft skin. A moment later, the pain dulled back into the throb she had come to know. Red snakes slithered down her arm, and Takao breathed a sigh of relief. As Takao opened another hole in her arm, she found tears sliding down her cheek. She knew that she could never tell Gunzou about any of this, but she still hated herself for knowing she was keeping things from him. Heart breaking, and her sadness turning to anger, she gripped the clippers tighter and eyed her already-bleeding arm. "What's one more?"

Another squeeze.

Another gasp.

Another river.

With each cut, another bit of anger at her father and the injustice of her situation ebbed away.

Snip. Her father's attitude.

Snip. The emails.

Snip. Her undeserving of her boyfriend.

Takao lost track of time, of how long she stood in her bathroom. Her arms rested in the sink, the counter and floor splattered red. After a time, exhaustion began to ebb at her strength. Knowing it wouldn't be long before she passed out, Takao dropped the clippers into the sink and began the well-rehearsed drill of cleaning up quickly. She wrapped her arm up with one layer of bandages and tied it off before washing her hands off. Having cleaned them, she tied another, clean layer over the first. Turning her attention to the floor, Takao unrolled the paper towels and wet them in the sink before cleaning off the floor and sink. As she stood up from the floor, she stumbled and knew she had to hurry. Throwing away all the bloody towels, she wiped the sink one last time before turning on the shower. As Takao waited for the water to heat up, she looked at herself in the mirror. She looked like death, with blood and tears staining her face, layers of blood running down both her arms. She eyed her clothes, in a pile on the floor. Her shirt, bra, and shirts all blood-coated. A few rips in the shorts from clenching her fist so hard to keep from crying as she widened already-open gashes. Looking again to the mirror, Takao's face lacked expression. Her eyes were glassy, face pale and drawn.

A sudden warmth met her face, and she realized steam from the shower was filling the room. As she eased herself into the shower, she heaved a sigh of relief as the water began to wash away the dried blood. Seeing the water run dark red should have made her panic, but that emotion died when she began cutting, nearly two months ago. Scraping the caked-up blood off her arms and from under her nails, Takao felt her vision begin to cloud, and hurriedly washed off the rest of the blood and grime, before getting out and drying off. Staggering out and into her bedroom, she managed to mostly dress before collapsing into her bed, exhaustion and blood loss bringing her under.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 Takao shook herself awake. As she rolled onto her side, she winced and flipped over. "Damn arm," she groaned. Groggily pulling herself out of bed, Takao reached up and touched the bandages still wrapped tight around her upper arm. Her body protested as she dragged herself back into the bathroom.

"Ugh." Takao's nose crinkled as the unique, metallic smell of blood again met her nose. Sighing, she pulled out an air freshener from the cabinet and set it on the sink. She got cleaned up, remembering in detail the events of last night. A few goosebumps ran down her arms. Shaking herself, Takao returned to her room and got dressed for school. She paused at the bathroom one more time before leaving for school. Gingerly unwrapping the bandages, Takao was relieved that the cuts had already begun to heal, and she discarded the bandages, applied a few band-aids, and washed her hands before heading downstairs.

Grabbing a few pieces of toast and a bottle of water, Takao made her way out to the garage, where she kept her car. As she backed out and headed for school, the cold began to make her arm throb. Groaning, she cranked up the heat and hoped it wouldn't hurt all day.

Gunzou's morning hadn't been that unusual. While he had slept in a bit, since he didn't have any early classes, he wasn't too concerned. He was concerned about Takao, since he hadn't heard from her all morning. As he eased his truck into his spot, Gunzou checked his phone again. Nothing.

 _Haven't heard from you yet. Ya okay?_ After checking on her, Gunzou mad his way towards the lounge, where he could relax and work on last minute homework before the day started. A few minutes later, a response came. _Yeah sorry. Was tired this morning. Love you_. Gunzou breathed a sigh of relief. He responded quickly, then, shooting an eye at the clock, stood to find his first class. After a few minutes, he'd made his way down to where her first class was. Scanning the sea of people turned up a crop of blue hair, and Gunzou hurried over to her.

"Hey Takao," He poked her ribs. With a squeak, she turned to face him.

"Hey dear. How are you?" Takao reached up and kissed him, before crushing her boyfriend in a hug. She nuzzled Gunzou's cheek briefly before slipping her hand into his and leading him towards his first class.

"Tired, but otherwise fine. You?"

"Same," Takao said. She weighed her options, but couldn't bring herself to bring up what she had done the night before. After dropping Gunzou off, Takao made her way towards her media class. She was thankful for the emptier hallways, but no sooner had she slid her headphones on, they were pulled off amid a bout of laughter. "What the-?"

"Miss me?" A flash of green and a flash of yellow had her dazed for a moment, before focusing on the two girls who stood alongside her, matching her pace.

Takao shivered. "A-oh h-hey Kirishima, Haruna." She nodded to each. "What brings you here?" Takao's mind began racing. She knew they had plenty of time before the bell, which had Takao cursing the school's decision to allow ten minutes between classes rather than five.

"We need to ask you something," Haruna said softly. For once, there was no tone or arrogance or indifference in her voice.

"Concerning the school council." Kirishima elaborated.

Takao's heart sank. The student council was run by the two's younger sister Hiei, who despite being the youngest of the four, had more power due to her position. Hiei and her minions, sisters confident Myoukou, quiet and stoic Nachi, hotheaded Ashigara, and lazy yet sharp Haguro ran the school with very little in terms of opposition. While their rules usually didn't affect her too much, there had been a few things that had annoyed Takao, such as the break times, school trip cutbacks, and tech restrictions.

"Okay. What about Kongou? Can't she help?"

"That's the problem," Haruna answered. "Kongou is on their side."

Takao frowned. "Side for what?" The two sisters obviously knew something Takao didn't.

Haruna locked eyes with Kirishima and slid over to whisper in her ear. "How much do we tell her now? It's kinda open here." Kirishima nodded while shooting a glance at both Takao and the hallway around them.

"Uh, guys?" Takao attempted to regain their attention. "I do need to get to my class, and I'm sure you two do as well."

The sisters turned to her. "Uh, yeah. Right. Okay." Kirishima pulled a piece of paper out of her pocket, pulled a pen out of Haruna's hair, and scrawled two numbers down before handing the note to Takao. "Text both of us when you get to class. As for what's going on, the short answer is what could be called abuse of power. Long answer is one we'll give you after school. Find me by the parking lot next to the weight room."

Takao nodded. "Okay. I-I'll be there." She was trying to keep her voice level, and could feel her face going red.

"Good. Don't be late cuz we have to be somewhere after class." Kirishima and Haruna waved before they hurried off to wherever.

Takao shook her head. "I need a drink. What the heck just happened? And what Did I just get myself into?" As she sank into the chair behind her computer a few moments later, a realisation struck her. _Those two were nice to me. They talked to me no more or less even terms. That's new. They must be desperate._ She pulled out the note Kirishima had handed her. Entering the two numbers, she fired off a quick text to the pair before turning to focus whatever it was her teacher was trying to explain.


	4. Chapter 4

I apologize for the lack of updates recently. Besides having holiday life going on, I haven't had much inspiration to write much recently. I'm not giving up on these fics, I have too much invested in them to give up now.

I'll be back as soon as I get some good inspiration. PM me with any questions or helpful ideas on how t go forward...I think I'm gonna need it.

Thanks, Ashigara's Wolf


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 4

The rest of the day had passed in a haze, with Takao almost entirely focused on whatever Haruna and Kirishima had intended to tell her. Even Gunzou had noticed her change of attitude, giving her a few nudges early in the day, to no effect. He wasn't blind, however, and allowed her the space she needed.

Pushing through the crowds after her last class, Takao's mind began to race. Haruna had acknowledged her text, but Kirishima hadn't. That made her a bit nervous, even though Takao couldn't figure out why. What had her completely confused was why those two had approached her in a friendly manner. Every other time she had dealt with the sisters, something had gone wrong. She came away hurt in one way or another, but not this time. Why? Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Takao reached the parking lot and began searching for Kirishima and her sister.

Something hit her in her left ribs, and Takao jumped as a small rock rolled away. Turning, she saw nothing out of the ordinary until a crop of yellow hair poked up over the hood of an old car Takao had overlooked. Calling out Haruna's name with a forced laugh to try to conceal her nervousness, Takao made her way over.

"Ah so you made it. Good." Kirishima and Haruna pitched their bags into the trunk of the car which, based on the two-tone green paint job, belonged to Kirishima. "Hop in, we'll explain on the way."

"Uh, what?" Takao momentarily panicked, but regained her composure. "Where are you going? What's the plan here?"

Kirishima faced Takao. Her usual aloof, haughty facade faded, to be replaced by a more serious, almost solem, expression. "There're a few things I was hoping to achieve by having you help us. Besides giving the student council a bit of what they deserve, I want to at least try to help clear the air between you and us."

Takao was taken slightly aback, as neither Kirishima nor Haruna came across as girls who would want to make amends out of the blue. "A-alright, I can get behind those ideas. One question though…"

"Whatcha got?" Kirishima's gaze met Takao's and she shivered.

"What brought about the change of heart for you two to suddenly want to be friends with me?" Takao locked eyes with Kirishima, blue eyes locked with blue.

"I had a feeling you were gonna ask that sooner or later." Kirishima sighed. "Actually, HaruHaru and I were planning on having this conversation with you over some Italian. Care to join us?" Haruna stuck her tongue out at her sister's nickname but nodded along with her.

Takao stepped back. "Uh, what about my car?"

"We'll drop you off back here before we head home. Don't worry." Haruna rested a hand briefly on Takao's shoulder. Takao looked from Haruna to Kirishima and back to Haruna. Neither girl appeared to be joking.

Takao's first thought was that this was somehow all a trap of some sort. In her mind, there wasn't any reason why these two should just suddenly be nice to her. On the other hand, she was getting somewhat annoyed by the constant antics of the student council. Her mind flashed back to several instances in the past few months when the council had gotten on her nerves. If anything, she personally wanted some the very least, she would at least maybe get to know these two better. Her phone was still in her pocket, so if worst came to worst she could text Gunzou and have him come to get her. Hopefully it wouldn't be that bad.

"Alright one question first." Takao wanted to clarify one thing first. "How do I know you're genuine?"

Kirishima turned to face the blue-haired girl, and laughed humorlessly. "Yeah, I can't blame you for asking that. After everything we did and said, you're skeptical right?"

Nodding, Takao eyed the pair. "Anyone would be." She set her phone aside and leaned forward.

"Quite frankly, we're worried," Kirishima said, her voice a bit lowered.

Kirishima opened the door of her car and slid in, while Haruna ushered Takao into the back seat and slid in beside her. Haruna sighed. "Strange it may sound, but it's our sister Hiei we're worried about. Or more specifically, her relationships."

Understandably, Takao did a double take. "Uh, Hiei? As in Student-Council-Hiei?"

Both sisters nodded. "Yes, her." Haruna confirmed. "It's not unusual for either of us or Kongou to not hear much from Hiei for a month or so, but she checks in every once in a while. That said, the last time I got a text from her was…" Haruna paused as she looked back through her phone. "...back in November. It's January, and there's nothing from her or her friends. As much as I don't always like her, it's worrying me."

"That surprises me," Takao said, as Kirishima started her car and headed out of the parking lot. As Kirishima pulled out onto the street, she stopped the car, and Takao looked up in concern. "Is something wrong?"

Snickering, Kirishima shook her head, and a sly grin broke on Haruna's face. "Kiri's got a few tricks up her sleeve yet. Hold on."

"Uh, alright…?" Takao, despite sounding skeptical, knew Kirishima's reputation as part daredevil, part showoff, and knew to heed Haruna's warning.

The moment Takao had buckled up, Kirishima stood on the brake, and Takao heard the engine begin to race. Shooting a worried glance at the blonde beside her, Takao didn't have time to voice her question before she was slammed back against the seat, while Kirishima cheered and Haruna let out an uncharacteristic shout of laughter.

Fighting to peek at the speedometer, Takao made out an 82 before Kirishima hit the brakes. "Okay what the hell was that? And what's with all the smoke?" She tried to control the shaking in her voice, but to no avail.

" _That_ is called a boosted launch, dear." The delight in Kirishima's voice was apparent. "It's a lot to try to explain, so I'll tell you about it later. Anyway, we're going over to Olive Garden for some food while we discuss what to do with Hiei. Then we'll swing back here and drop you off."

Takao nodded. "Alright. I'll just let Gunzou know where I'll be." After sending him a message, Takao leaned back as Kirishima and Haruna settled into car talk that she couldn't follow. Reflecting on the past two days, Takao tried to figure out what had happened that led to where she was now—in the back of a really fast car with two sisters she wouldn't have ever expected to be nice to her, going to talk about helping their sister. The sister Takao still didn't like, or even personally know. _I'm definitely ordering a drink today._


End file.
